The present invention, in some embodiments thereof, relates to methods and devices for delivery of medical implants and, more particularly, but not exclusively, to methods and devices for delivery of medical implants into an intravascular lumen.
Various systems for delivery of vascular medical implants have been devised over the years in order to assist physicians in the implantation process within a patient, preferably in a minimally invasive manner. Most of the delivery systems include an elongated catheter that is used to access various passageways inside a patient's body.
Implants may include devices designed for compression into a small size tube or catheter to facilitate their introduction into the vasculature of the patient. The implants are subsequently expandable either to occlude defects or to contact the walls of the blood vessels.
A number of coupling devices have been developed to release the implant at the intravascular target area. An example for such a coupling device is described in U.S. Patent Application No. 2008/0154302, filed on Mar. 3, 2008, which describes a coupling device which is disposed at the distal end of an interventional delivery system for coupling to an implant. The coupling device has a first and second prong connected at one end. The other end of the prongs opens or closes to release or trap an object, e.g., a bead tethered from an implant. A slot at the distal end of the coupling device allows extra degrees of flexibility for the coupling device.